The Darkness Within

11 - Comfort and Celebration

The next morning Ciara skipped both breakfast and lunch as she didn't feel like leaving her room at all. However, halfway through the afternoon, she felt the urge to head outside and play with the werewolf pups. So, she got up and shoved her gloves, fur-clothes, and fur-shoes on. She strapped her thin sword to her back, her dagger and hunting knife to her hip. Tala almost knocked Ciara over in her excitement to get out the door, the wolf's huge lion-sized body barely fitting through the door.

With a chuckle at the wolf's clumsiness, Ciara followed Tala outside their room and out of the packhouse. Like the day before, it was snowing. However, this time the snow was light and could see quite a ways away. Ciara could almost see the trees that bordered the clearing.

Despite her nightmare the night before, she couldn't help but love the thick heavy snows. The air smelled so crisp and the wind's frosty touch peppered her exposed face. She took a moment to just appreciate the wonderful weather, happy for the quiet the snows provided as each snowflake gobbled up the snow.

Her reverie was broken by the giggles of children. They ran up to Tala and began to attempt to climb on her. However, the wolf was now taller than most of the small pups and easily evaded their attempts.

Ciara sat down in a nearby chair watching the pups play with Tala and each other. This time they carried around their weapons and attacked one another playfully. As usual, Tala allowed the almost-healed Clay onto her back and allowed him to wage war from her back. The wolf was large enough now that she could carry about five of the small pups.

The pups wandered off, deciding to play elsewhere and she let them. They were in no danger and there were double the guards around the pack so any threat would be spotted and dealt with before it reached the pups.

Ciara used the peace and quiet to decompress and released the stress from the night before. She'd had nightmares before, more often when she still lived at home with her mother, however, she appreciated the comfort and safety that her wolf provided. Ultimately she wished that she could stand physical contact with another human, or maybe a werewolf since there was a serious lack of humans at the pack grounds, but even the kindest and simplest of touches could send her spiraling in her memories.

The sharpness of the fear from the memories had faded somewhat in the time that she had spent in the forest, but the panic and fear was still there. She was genuinely thankful for the training the pack had provided for her, alongside the weapons she now bore on her back. While against some opponents she would be no match, she felt reassured that she could fight, she could defend herself if the need arose.

The wind sent a gentle caress towards her and she relished in the comforting touch while it lasted. She turned her head to the side when she heard snow crunching under approaching footsteps. The light-brown-haired future-alpha was approaching and she was unable to manage a smile so she turned her head away to hide her distress.

Evelyn sat beside her and didn't say anything for a while, letting Ciara stare into the snowy surroundings. There was an audible sniff every so often and eventually, the werewolf spoke up.

"What's wrong?" Evelyn asked, her voice softer than Ciara had ever heard it be.

"Nothing," she replied quietly, the response automatic.

There was another audible sniff, "That's a lie. You smell distressed."

At this, Ciara turned to look at her friend and she couldn't stop the tears that brewed in her eyes at the caring look on the dirty blonde's face.

"Hey, hey," Evelyn cooed in an attempt to calm her, coming closer to her friend. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me but I'm here, okay?"

She managed a nod in response and felt one of her tears fall down her face. A want to be held rose within her, bringing with it the fear of being touched as well, and her eyes filled with more tears at the conflicting feelings. She sat there staring at the snow and silently letting her tears fall. Her throat constricted and she felt panic begin to rise within her.